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GRINNELL, Iowa – Ripon finished atop the North Division for consecutive seasons and now serve as host for the 2014 Midwest Conference (MWC) Baseball Championship that is set for May 9-10. Grinnell claimed the South Division crown and will be joined by St. Norbert and Cornell to battle for a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
Tournament action opens at 9 a.m. on Friday morning when Cornell takes on St. Norbert at Marian University in Fond du Lac, Wis. while Ripon hosts Grinnell at Francis Field on the campus of Ripon. The winners of the two opening games will meet at 1:00 p.m. with the losers to play in the first elimination game at 4:00 p.m. The winner of the double elimination MWC Championship will also earn the conference’s bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Cornell makes its return back to the MWC Championship Tournament for the first time in school history since coming back to the MWC last year. The Rams enter the championship after winning 21 games, which was the second-most among all MWC teams. Cornell relies on a steady offense that finished the year with a .307 average (second in league) and posted the third best team on base percentage (.379) and slugging percentage (.388). Along with a strong offense the Rams pitching staff posted a league-low 4.04 ERA and held opposing hitters to a .291 average. Beriah Quick finished third in the league with a .408 averaged while posing a .472 on base percentage with a league-high 58 hits. Buddy Mattern (.331/.392/.488) led the team with 11 doubles and three home runs while John Tesensky (.379/.455/.452) and Brandon Davis (.358/.393/.444) combined for 14 doubles and only 21 total strikeouts. On the pitching side Kyle Stennes led the way with a 3.33 ERA in 51.1 innings that included four wins and 36 strikeouts. Jeremuy Ryan serves at the number two in the rotation with a 3.43 ERA in 42 innings through seven starts.
Grinnell participates in the championship weekend for the sixth straight season as they captured the South Division title for the fourth time in the last five seasons. The Pioneers rely on a solid pitching staff that finished third in the MWC allowing opposing team to hit only .286 while leading the league with 214 strikeouts. Sam Tinkman headlines the rotation with a 5-1 record in eight starts that included two complete games. Tinkman finished the year third in the league in ERA (2.30), second in opposing batting average (.229), and second in strikeouts (54). Fisher leads the team with six wins and posted a 2.92 ERA in 49.1 innings while holding hitters to a .270 average and striking out 32. Kelley leads the team out of the bullpen with 13 appearances in 42.1 innings with a .234 opponents batting average and 43 strikeouts. Mack headlines the Pioneers offense after finishing atop the league in both batting average (.448) and on base percentage (.520) while finishing second in slugging percentage (.648) that includes nine doubles, two triples, and five home runs. Godinsky hit .318/.420/.500 with nine doubles and three home runs while Bell hit .300/.374/.360 with six doubles.
Ripon ended the season with a 14-2 conference mark for the second straight season and hosts the MWC Championship Tournament this weekend. The Red Hawks used a well-balanced attack en route to the North Division title by leading the league in batting average (.309) and slugging percentage (.435) while finishing tied for first in ERA 4.04 and first in opposing batting average (,273). Michael Polcyn finished the year as one of the best hitters in the league as he led the MWC in slugging percentage (.791) while finishing second in batting average (.403) and on base percentage (.509). Polcyn led all hitters with 11 home runs, 29 walks, 102 total bases while striking out only 14 times in 165 plate appearances. Mitchell Busch hit .365/.399/.480 with 11 doubles and two home runs with teammate Tom Sawyer hitting .352/.413/.428 with eight doubles and a home run. Marshall Zahn finished the year second in the league with a 1.84 ERA and held opposing hitters to only a .210 average. Zahn also struck out better than a batter per inning with 52 whiffs in only 49 innings. Patrick Van Daalwyk compliments Zahn in the rotation with a 3.59 ERA in 52.2 innings with 40 strikeouts and three complete games.
St. Norbert competes in the championship tournament for the third straight season and aim to win its second championship in the last three seasons. The Green Knights reached the championship game last season before losing to Ripon in 13 innings and finished the season going 20-14 overall and 10-6 in league play. The Green Knights rely on a strong pitching staff that posted a 4.22 team ERA and held hitters to only a .282 average. Matt Freeman led St. Norbert on the mound with a 2.55 ERA and held hitters to only a .232 average and struck out 38 in 53 innings. Jake McMahon pitched 48 innings and allowed only 15 earned runs in 48 innings with a 2.81 ERA and three wins. Brett Nohr rounds out a strong trio of arms with a 3.74 ERA and three complete games in 53 innings pitched. Offensively Travis Mason hit .362/.442/.535 with seven doubles, three triples and three home runs with Derek Klegin hitting .328/.387./.391 with five doubles and home runs. Alex Larsen leads the team with 14 extra base hits including six home runs with Troy Rottier slugging eight doubles.